New Italian enoteca backs Californian wine

Dalla Terra café and wine bar has opened in London’s Covent Garden.

Promising a “metropolitan chic” take on the Italian enoteca, the venue in St Martin’s Courtyard is serving breakfast pastries through to a selection of dishes from across Italy for lunch and dinner.

The 180-strong wine list is weighted towards Italian wine, with over 30 bins offered by the glass, but also features a broad Californian range thanks to a tie-in with UK-based importers California Fine Wine.

This Californian selection specialises in smaller producers from the southern end of the state, many of whom are working with Italian grape varieties. Describing these wines as “the underdogs of the Napa Valley producers,” Dalla Terra maintains: “We feel that the quality is outstanding, yet relatively unknown here in the UK.”

Together with an in-house assortment of olive oils, vinegars and cheeses, these wines are also available for customers to take home.

Chef Araldo De Vitis, formerly of St John, has created a menu of mostly light, small dishes such as swordfish carpaccio with avocado and lemon oil, cured meat and cheese platters or blood orange and watercress salad.

Dalla Terra will also offer seasonal tasting menus, an annual Truffle Week and private dining events.

Abandoning the rural interiors of a traditional enoteca, Dalla Terra has opted for a more urban but relaxed feel, with lounge chairs by its fireplace and, as summer approaches, outdoor seating in the courtyard.